A rare case of congenital heart disease with ambiguous genitalia

Birth defects have become the important cause of mortality and morbidity in the perinatal period. Congenital heart disease (CHD) is the most common birth defect which includes the varying forms of cardiac abnormalities and occurs with an incidence of 1 per 100 live births. In most of the cases, CHD is an isolated malformation, but about 33% have associated anomalies. Ambiguous genitalia are one such rare anomaly that is associated with CHD among other genital abnormalities. The possible causes for this association could be pseudohermaphroditism, which in turn, may be due to congenital adrenal hyperplasia. The government of any country should consider providing for its people a free prenatal diagnosis for susceptible disorders.     

Antioxidant and hepatoprotective effect of the ethyl acetate extract of Enicostemma axillare (Lam). Raynal against CCL4-induced liver injury in rats

Enicostemma axillare is used in Indian traditional medicine as a liver tonic. Its ethyl acetate extract has shown potent in vitro antioxidant activity and found to contain 7.26% of a bitter secoiridoid glycoside, swertiamarin. Hence, in the present study the ethyl acetate extract was screened for hepatoprotective and antioxidant properties against CCl4 induced hepatic injury in rats. The hepatoprotection was assessed in terms of reduction in histological damage and changes in serum enzymes and metabolites. The pretreatment with the extract at 100 and 200 mg/kg body weight doses given orally for eight days prior to CCl4 caused significant restoration of altered biochemical changes due to CCl4 towards the normal in serum, liver and kidney. The extract treatment at 200 mg/kg body weight was found to be more potent than the standard silymarin at 100 mg/kg body weight in reversing most of the biochemical parameters. Histopathological studies complemented the results of biochemical estimations in providing a proof of hepatoprotective and antioxidant actions of the extract. The study provides a support to the ethnomedical use of E. axillare in India.     

Synthesis of an Fmoc-threonine bearing core-2 glycan: A building block for PSGL-1 via Fmoc-assisted solid-phase peptide synthesis

Selectins (L, E, and P) are vascular endothelial molecules that play an important role in the recruitment of leukocytes to inflamed tissue. In this regard, P-Selectin glycoprotein-1 (PSGL-1) has been identified as a ligand for P-Selectin. PSGL-1 binds to P-Selectin through the interaction of core-2 O-glycan expressing sialyl Lewis^x oligosaccharide and the three tyrosine sulfate residues. Herein, we report the synthesis of threonine-linked core-2 O-glycan as an amino acid building block for the synthesis of PSGL-1. This building block was further incorporated in the Fmoc-assisted solid-phase peptide synthesis to provide a portion of the PSGL-1 glycopeptide.     

The reaction of flavanols with nitrous acid protects against N-nitrosamine formation and leads to the formation of nitroso derivatives which inhibit cancer cell growth

Studies have suggested that diets rich in polyphenols such as flavonoids may lead to a reduced risk of gastrointestinal cancers. We demonstrate the ability of monomeric and dimeric flavanols to scavenge reactive nitrogen species derived from nitrous acid. Both epicatechin and dimer B2 (epicatechin dimer) inhibited nitrous acid-induced formation of 3-nitrotyrosine and the formation of the carcinogenic N-nitrosamine, N-nitrosodimethylamine. The reaction of monomeric and dimeric epicatechin with nitrous acid led to the formation of mono- and di-nitroso flavanols, whereas the reaction with hesperetin resulted primarily in the formation of nitrated products. Although, epicatechin was transferred across the jejunum of the small intestine yielding metabolites, its nitroso form was not absorbed. Dimer B2 but not epicatechin monomer inhibited the proliferation of, and triggered apoptosis in, Caco-2 cells. The latter was accompanied by caspase-3 activation and reductions in Akt phosphorylation, suggesting activation of apoptosis via inhibition of prosurvival signaling. Furthermore, the dinitroso derivative of dimer B2, and to a lesser extent the dinitroso-epicatechin, also induced significant toxic effects in Caco-2 cells. The inhibitory effects on cellular proliferation were paralleled by early inhibition of ERK 1/2 phosphorylation and later reductions in cyclin D1 levels, indicating modulation of cell cycle regulation in Caco-2 cells. These effects highlight multiple routes in which dietary derived flavanols may exert beneficial effects in the gastrointestinal tract.     

Inhibition of aflatoxin B production of Aspergillus flavus, isolated from soybean seeds by certain natural plant products

AIMS: The inhibitory effect of cowdung fumes, Captan, leaf powder of Withania somnifera, Hyptis suaveolens, Eucalyptus citriodora, peel powder of Citrus sinensis, Citrus medica and Punica granatum, neem cake and pongamia cake and spore suspension of Trichoderma harzianum and Aspergillus niger on aflatoxin B(1) production by toxigenic strain of Aspergillus flavus isolated from soybean seeds was investigated. METHODS AND RESULTS: Soybean seed was treated with different natural products and fungicide captan and was inoculated with toxigenic strain of A. flavus and incubated for different periods. The results showed that all the treatments were effective in controlling aflatoxin B(1) production. Captan, neem cake, spore suspension of T. harzianum, A. niger and combination of both reduced the level of aflatoxin B(1) to a great extent. Leaf powder of W. somnifera, H. suaveolens, peel powder of C. sinensis, C. medica and pongamia cake also controlled the aflatoxin B(1) production. CONCLUSIONS: All the natural product treatments applied were significantly effective in inhibiting aflatoxin B(1) production on soybean seeds by A. flavus. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: These natural plant products may successfully replace chemical fungicides and provide an alternative method to protect soybean and other agricultural commodities from aflatoxin B(1) production by A. flavus.     

Shaping the nucleus: factors and forces

Take a look at a textbook illustration of a cell and you will immediately be able to locate the nucleus, which is often drawn as a spherical or ovoid shaped structure. But not all cells have such nuclei. In fact, some disease states are diagnosed by the presence of nuclei that have an abnormal shape or size. What defines nuclear shape and nuclear size, and how does nuclear geometry affect nuclear function? While the answer to the latter question remains largely unknown, significant progress has been made towards understanding the former. In this review, we provide an overview of the factors and forces that affect nuclear shape and size, discuss the relationship between ER structure and nuclear morphology, and speculate on the possible connection between nuclear size and its shape. We also note the many interesting questions that remain to be explored. J. Cell. Biochem. 113: 2813–2821, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Engineering aspects of biological ion channels—from biosensors to computational models for permeation

Molecular sequencing has helped resolve the phylogenetic relationships amongst the diverse groups of algal, fungal-like and protist organisms that constitute the Chromalveolate “superkingdom” clade. It is thought that the whole clade evolved from a photosynthetic ancestor and that there have been at least three independent plastid losses during their evolutionary history. The fungal-like oomycetes and hyphochytrids, together with the marine flagellates Pirsonia and Developayella, form part of the clade defined by Cavalier-Smith and Chao (2006) as the phylum “Pseudofungi”, which is a sister to the photosynthetic chromistan algae (phylum Ochrophyta). Within the oomycetes, a number of predominantly marine holocarpic genera appear to diverge before the main “saprolegnian” and “peronosporalean” lines, into which all oomycetes had been traditionally placed. It is now clear that oomycetes have their evolutionary roots in the sea. The earliest diverging oomycete genera so far documented, Eurychasma and Haptoglossa, are both obligate parasites that show a high degree of complexity and sophistication in their host parasite interactions and infection structures. Key morphological and cytological features of the oomycetes will be reviewed in the context of our revised understanding of their likely phylogeny. Recent genomic studies have revealed a number of intriguing similarities in host–pathogen interactions between the oomycetes with their distant apicocomplexan cousins. Therefore, the earlier view that oomycetes evolved from the largely saprotrophic “saprolegnian line” is not supported and current evidence shows these organisms evolved from simple holocarpic marine parasites. Both the hyphal-like pattern of growth and the acquisition of oogamous sexual reproduction probably developed largely after the migration of these organisms from the sea to land.